running chainsaw within three inches of Vail’s face.
Release
Upon the completion of post-production, filmmakers found it difficult to secure a distributor willing to market the film, due to the graphic content; however, on August 28, 1974, the Bryanston Distributing Company agreed to distribute the film. The Texas Chain Saw Massacre premiered on October 1, 1974 in Austin, Texas, almost a year after the completion of filming. The film screened nationally in the United States as a Saturday afternoon matine, and found success with a broader audience after it was falsely marketed as being a “true story”. After 1976, the film was reissued to first run theaters, every year, for eight years, with full-page ads.
Hooper reportedly hoped that the MPAA would give the complete, uncut release print a PG rating due to the minimal amount of gore presented in the film; The